The company expects holiday packages to contribute a mid-to-high single-digit share of its overall business over the next 12 months, according to Gaurav Patwari, Chief Business Officer at Cleartrip. The segment has higher ticket sizes and stronger margins than individual travel bookings, Patwari said.
Domestic holiday packages typically have an average ticket value of ₹50,000 to ₹1 lakh, while international packages range from ₹1 lakh to ₹3 lakh, according to Patwari.
Cleartrip has combined flights, hotels, activities and transfers into a single itinerary across domestic and international destinations. Travellers can change elements such as flights, hotels and activities.
“Customers want customised packages; they want a bundle product,” Patwari said. He said the larger opportunity was to get travellers to buy holidays as a bundled product rather than put the different components together themselves.
A segment of travellers continues to book flights and hotels separately and arrange activities independently, Patwari said. Cleartrip’s holiday packages allow customers to start with an expert-curated plan and modify the hotels, flights and activities.
The holiday market remains fragmented, with a large share of travel planning still handled by offline and regional operators, Patwari said.
“There are about 3 lakh travel agents in India,” he said, pointing to the continued presence of smaller offline travel agencies and local operators. Holidays are more complex than individual flight or hotel bookings because they involve multiple components and are often purchased through local or regional operators, he said.
Holiday packages will also be available on the Flipkart app from October 1, giving Cleartrip access to Flipkart’s broader customer base. Patwari said it was too early to quantify how much business could come through Flipkart, given that the two platforms have different customer profiles.
“A substantial portion of our travel booking happens on Flipkart,” Patwari said, adding that Flipkart has greater reach in smaller towns and cities, while Cleartrip has a stronger presence among metro and more affluent customers.
The expansion comes about five years after Flipkart acquired Cleartrip. Patwari said Cleartrip has grown rapidly over the past year despite a challenging macroeconomic environment, with the company focusing on adding product lines and building a one-stop travel platform.
The holiday packages will include expert-curated itineraries that travellers can modify. Customers can also access destination experts during the planning process. Once a trip is booked, travellers get a live itinerary with details including driver information, vouchers and day-wise plans, along with 24×7 support during the journey, the company said.
AI is also being used across the holiday business, according to Patwari. Its applications include destination discovery, inspiration, itinerary creation, itinerary curation, content curation and back-end operations.
The launch comes as travel demand remains strong, but costs have become more challenging. Patwari said demand for travel remains robust, while geopolitical tensions, higher oil prices and adverse currency movements have pushed up airline costs and fares.
He said domestic airfares are currently around 20-25% higher than last year, while international fares have also increased. Disruptions in the Middle East have added another layer of uncertainty, although demand for destinations including Japan and Southeast Asia remains strong.
Cleartrip does not independently set these prices, Patwari said, noting that the platform moves with airline and hotel pricing. Its scale allows it to negotiate with suppliers and secure deals, which it says can help deliver value to customers.
